Jo Thornton - My Blog - Breast Enhancing Advice, Product Updates and Chat

 

My Blog...for helpful guides, product spotlights, Jo Thornton news, general chat and my hopefully interesting musings :) 

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Category: Jo Thornton News

  1. Little Stocks Update

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    Just a quick little stock update for you:

    I've had some terrible issues with sourcing my raw materials for my products, so you may have noticed that some of my breast forms in particular have sold out.  I have to allow that to happen, starting production after that due to these logistics, and I am so sorry about that. It means I will do bigger production runs when I do. 

    The good news is that all the breast forms are currently in production, as well as breast enhancer styles 9 and 12. I am hoping for the following:

    • Styles 9 and 12 to finish first and be back in stock in around 3 weeks.
    • All breast forms to be finished and restocked by the end of April absolute latest, but hopefully closer to mid-April.

    All my other breast enhancers are just going into production now :) 

  2. Black Friday

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    Black Friday. Instagram post.

     

    It rolls around fast, but here we are again with another Black Friday/Black Friday week/Black Friday Month.

    You can probably see that I'm not running offers for it here on my site, or anywhere else that you might find me.

    The simple reason being that for an independent shop, it's become a beast that we can't contain. Buyers expect massive savings beyond the scope of what a small business can afford. It does depend on the business of course, so I can only really speak for my little store, but many of us keep our prices as low as we can and run on small profit margins all year round.  We operate our shops from a place of love and care for our customers, offering value and quality of service and product. Our costs are high, being such little enterprises who don't have the buying power of large stores, and we absorb those in order to offer a great value product.  

    So, when it comes to massive savings, it's just something I can't do.  If I could do it, it would mean I would be charging you too much in the first place.  

    I think that's a better way to run my store for you, and I hope you agree. 

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  3. Latest Royal Mail Strike Information

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    Here is the latest update from Royal Mail regarding ongoing industrial action affecting my posting and deliveries of your products:

     

    Information about deliveries

    Strike action in delivery offices will take place on Friday 4 November and Thursday 9 November. Customers will not receive a delivery on those days.

    Customer Service Points will be closed on those days and Redelivery and Parcel Collect services won't be operating.

  4. Update

    Posted on

    My last blog post saved as an empty page (thank you Georgina for letting me know), so hopefully this one will pop up ok for you.

    First, a little breast enhancer update -

    Back in stock

     

    I can now expand on that information, and let you know that style 12 should be here this week, and I shall check them in and pop them on the site as soon as possible. 

    In other news, it was a Feminist Icon article that I'd written for you that didn't save, so I'll get another one added soon. I do like to write about them occasionally, and I find it very interesting myself to do the research. 

    Finally, to let you know what I am up to behind the scenes, besides the usual day-to-day activities, I am currently working on my stock software to make sure it is accurate. I've been using it since November 2019, and I've realised that due to the very complicated setup I have (mainly due to products being added on to other products), the stock numbers I have are not accurate.  This of course affects my accounting side of things, but also affects you, as I can't be sure what the stock levels are.  I've uncovered some bigger issues hidden underneath that too, which means it's time to delve deeper into it.  I can't delay any longer and must figure them out and address them, to make sure it is all working well.  It's a huge job! I like a challenge and a puzzle, but some of this has me stumped. Where can an entire box of fashion tape vanish to? Answers on a postcard please! :) 

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  5. Little Changes - Posting Days and Machine Cog Oiling!

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    Happy sunny June day! 

    It still amazes me that anyone reads this little blog, but I know that new and "old" customers alike do, so here is a little update for you, fresh from my head!

    As many of you know, I run the store on my own, with help for the packing side of things from my lovely Mum.

    My daily tasks do vary, but generally I spend the morning doing urgent emails, then packaging up and dispatching orders, and dealing with urgent stock tasks. I then get to go back to emails later in the afternoon on a Monday, mid/late morning on other days.  The emails I receive and like to send are detailed, so these usually take me a few hours.  

    The rest of the day is then left for other tasks, and it is keeping struggle with.  My to-do list/wish list grows and never shrinks! When you run a little shop, there is so much that goes on behind the scenes. 

    These really vary and are tasks such as:

    • Accounting
    • Tax
    • VAT
    • Stock Planning
    • Stock designing
    • Stock manufacture and shipping
    • Postage tasks
    • Social Media
    • Website and other stores updating
    • Product pages updating
    • Photography
    • Dealing with things going wrong (yes PC, I am talking to you),
    • etc etc.
    • Ordering supplies such as packaging

    These are just broad categories, but there are often many of each task needing doing at one time. 

    On the one hand I know my customer facing tasks are the most important, but it is also true that doing these other longer tasks do help you and are super important. 

    As an example, the new breast form graphics that I am currently designing. It's taken me quite a while to learn the software, but I am at last getting there.  It's just taking a lot longer than I thought and they are not even finished yet. I get sad that it means I am not replying to emails straight away when doing tasks like that, but the key point I just realised is:

    these tasks help you, my customers.

    They may not all be quite as direct with helping you, but they all do. Keeping the tax man happy keeps my shop open and able to help you, ordering good value postage supplies means I can send your items well protected and keep my prices down, keeping the website updated with stocks makes sure you can buy what you'd like to buy etc.

    It's this I need to remind myself

    So how to find more time?!

    With all this in mind I've decided to have a day every few weeks where I don't dispatch/post out products to you.  By doing this is won't take me the full double time the next day, but it will give me a valuable few hours where I can work on some of the other tasks.

    I will pop a note in the store to give plenty of notice, so you know to get your orders in if urgent. 

    Hopefully this will mean I am able to improve my customer experience, as well as oiling the cogs better behind the scenes :) 

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  6. Updated Breast Enhancer Style 12 Video

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    I've made a new video to show you the new size :)

  7. New Amazon Store

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    To follow on from my last two posts, I have received my pen tablet! It is amazing but has a little fault with an accessory, so I'm getting it replaced. I think it is going to take me a little while to get used to it, but I hope to be able to bring you much better product sketches in the future.

    In the meantime, I have been working on a new Amazon store to give a much better customer experience there.  I can be honest here as it is my little blog, that I do have mixed feelings about being a seller on Amazon. They do have their benefits for some of my customers, as their logistics services are second-to-none with the Prime delivery options.  From a customer comprehension point of view though, they are trickier, as I am very limited to what information I can give to the customer. They don't give me many characters or images to explain the product, so with a product like mine, that can make it very tricky. 

    I am hoping that my new store will help with that. As I am now a registered brand on Amazon, I am able to custom build a store, and within that I can custom make pages of information which will really help.  I hope!

    Amazon Store Progress

    It's a slow process, but I am pleased about how it is getting on and hope it will be up and running soon. 

    If you are ever in doubt if I would prefer for you to buy here on my Amazon store, the answer is absolutely here! The Amazon fees are the biggest I face, and it certainly does make it difficult for us little businesses to be on there, but as many customers head straight to Amazon it's essential for me to be there and I am very grateful for the number of people who find me through my Amazon presence. On my website however, I am able to offer options for packaging such as boxes and organza bags, add-ons such as adhesive tapes, videos and guides to help you, and you can email me whenever you like.  I love serving you here, as it's our own little space to connect and interact.

    I better get back to doing this store for now though :)

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  8. Out With the Old and in with the New! New Product Coming and Goodbye Style 7a

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    news I'm back up and running fully post-Covid and all the complexities it brought, and I've just remembered that I didn't let you know the great news.
    Style 12 is getting a bigger version!  Jo Thornton Style 12 Burgundy

     

    I started working on her a while ago and she went into production recently, and will soon be here for me to share with you.

    Style 12 works so well, with her concave back to give you a boost whilst sitting great against your chest of any size, but I am getting more and more 38/40/42" band ladies who have small cup sizes and would just like a little more shape.  This is the same for the trans community too, who are often in the wider band sizes, so need an enhancer with a little more width and the possibility for growth.  My current style 12 size is huge for ladies with smaller band sizes, but not quite wide enough for those with bigger bands needing a mid to bigger boost.

    The only option until now has been my triangle full breast forms in the 400g size, which is a big enough step up to make a good difference and give a great weight.  The issue for some has been the cost, as they come with a fully crafted and darkened nipple, which adds a great amount of cost. Many customers do not want/need this as they are looking for something more for the odd night out. 

    So, I decided in the New Year to go for it and make pairs in a 360g each side with no nipple. This keeps the costs right down for you, and makes them the biggest breast enhancer in my range, as they are a whopping 720g a pair. 

    She's due in soon, so I shall be getting the photos done and getting her on the site for you asap.  YAY!


    Out with the Old:

    With an equally heavy heart, it's time to say goodbye to style 7a.

    She was one of the first styles I made, right back in 2006 and has been a big part of my range ever since.  Over time I've developed new styles to the great range I have today, and there are sometimes a lot of overlap with styles that fit people. It can get a bit confusing with choice, plus there are still sizes that I can't cater for as much as I'd like to (hence the introduction of the bigger style 12).  I have to make space in my budgets and looking at style 7a, I realised it was time she retired after all her fabulous hard work through the years.  Most women find style 7b a better size, or are catered for with style 9, so it's a logical move to retire her and concentrate on new styles to help fill the gaps in my range.  I have lots of stocks left and I will keep these exclusively for my site alone, once the stocks run lower.  This should ensure that she will be available for a good while for those looking for a new pair.  After that style 7b will simply become style 7. 

    Goodbye my lovely style 7a, you've been fabulous! Style 7 party

     

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